5 DIY Halloween Decor Ideas

Those pumpkins from your hat centerpiece have a much more traditional role in Halloween décor: as the glowing, spooky jack-o'-lantern welcoming your Halloween guests.

Pumpkins and gourds and all sorts of autumn produce are the workhorses of the holiday. Carve out a bunch of giant gourds, fill them with apples or candy corn and stack them in each corner of the room. If you're a gourmand, bake sweet pumpkin mash or mix up pumpkin soup and serve it in tiny gourd tureens. Line up a string of mini-pumpkins along the mantle. Put a jack-o'-lantern (with an electric candle, of course) in each window of the house, facing passersby.

To really catch some glances, build a giant, stacked-pumpkin pyramid in the front yard. You can paint on silly or scary faces, and maybe even prop up a scarecrow to watch over the patch. Don't forget to venture outside of the orange color range -- pale pumpkins or bright gourds will stand out from your more traditional jack-o'-lantern.

The creativity is really just beginning, though. Remember, this is your Halloween…